Planning 2.0: Improving the Way we Plan Together

As part of our continuing commitment to improve our management of the nation’s public lands, the Bureau of Land Management is reviewing the way we develop and update our Resource Management Plans (RMPs).

Through this initiative, we hope to improve our land use planning process so that we can more effectively plan across landscapes and be more responsive to environmental and social change. We hope that this approach will create a more dynamic, durable and efficient planning process that can better honor the valuable contributions made by the public; non-government organizations; and our partners from state; tribal and local governments; as well as other federal agencies.

In developing RMPs, we are committed to involving the public and our partners, so together we can build well- informed decisions. This helps us better manage public lands and resources consistent with federal law, while seeking consistency with local, tribal and state laws, policies and plans.

Based on our preliminary internal BLM review, we think it will be possible to make targeted changes to specific areas in our planning regulations and land use planning handbook that will allow us to:

Conduct effective planning across landscapes and at multiple scales.

Create a more dynamic and efficient planning process that is responsive to change.

Provide new and enhanced opportunities for collaborative planning with the public and our partners.

Summary of Initial Public Input

The BLM launched Planning 2.0 in May 2014 by seeking public input on how we can improve the land use planning process. Over 6,000 groups and individuals submitted written comments. This information has been summarized and is available at the link below:

As we continue to develop the Planning 2.0 initiative, we anticipate additional opportunities for public involvement. We anticipate proposing targeted changes to our planning regulations and these changes will be open for formal public review and comment in the summer of 2015. We also will be revising our current planning handbook to incorporate new guidance and the concepts needed to effectively plan across landscapes.